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Monday, 25 July 2022

AM

We began the day excavating Locus 38, the dark gray, charcoal-rich deposit situated along the western edge of what was excavated as Locus 35. We are using handpicks and trowels to excavate and are hand-sorting soil in the trench before passing it through 1cm and 2mm gauge sieves. The soil is dark gray in color, due to high quantities of charcoal, and is loose in texture, exhibiting little compaction. The deposit contains a scattering of medium-sized rocks (max. dimension 25cm) but also contains high quantities of material culture, especially that associated with metallurgy; specifically, we are recovering exceptionally high quantities of slag. We also are finding high quantities of vitrified terracotta and moderate quantities of pottery and bone, but little tile or plaster. Specifically, we found an iron droplet (Find #112), a large slag fragment (Find #114), a spiralized burnt bone fragment (Find #117), a diagnostic bone fragment (Find #113), and three teeth (Finds #115, 116, 118).

In the southernmost meter of the locus, we have removed the charcoal-rich soil of Locus 38, revealing the yellowish, compacted, limestone included deposit of Locus 35 beneath. In the northern meters of the locus, where the locus also is wider, the locus is significantly thicker; we are still excavating the charcoal-rich soil of Locus 38. In the northern meters of the locus, we also are finding more stones than in the south. However, the rocks present in the south of the locus do seem to be

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arranged somewhat linearly, running from NE to SW, although they are too sparse to constitute a feature. However, they do seem to delineate Locus 38 from Locus 35; to the west of these stones, we still have the charcoal-included soil of Locus 38, while to the east we have revealed the compacted, yellowish, limestone included deposit of Locus 35. Therefore, we will keep them in situ, at least for the time being, until we determine whether they constitute a feature.

While working in the northern meters of the locus, we continue to recover high quantities of material culture associated with metallurgy, specifically with the processing and refining of metallic ores, including slag and a crucible fragment (Find #119).

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Special Finds

Find #112

• Locus 38
• 108.15E/44.39S
• 26.31m A.E.
• Iron droplets

Find #113

• Locus 38
• 107.96E/45.04S
• 26.30m A.E.
• Diagnostic bone fragment

Find #114

• Locus 38
• 108.51E/43.96S
• 26.35m A.E.
• Large slag fragments

Find #115

• Locus 38
• 108.38E/45.61S
• 26.24m A.E.
• Teeth

Find #116

• Locus 38
• 108.38E/43.83S
• 26.29m A.E.
• Tooth

Find #117

• Locus 38
• 108.05E/44.63S
• 26.31m A.E.
• Spiralized bone fragment

Find #118

• Locus 38
• 108.29E/44.05S
• 26.35m A.E.
• Tooth

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Find #119

• Locus 38
• 108.20E/44.60S
• 26.25m A.E.
• Crucible fragment

PM

Work continued in Locus 38. We continue to excavate using handpicks and trowels and hand-sort soil in the trench before passing it through 1cm and 2mm gauge sieves. The soil remains dark gray, rich in charcoal, and loose in texture and compaction. We continue to recover high quantities of slag and other materials associated with metallurgy; specifically, we recovered two additional crucible fragments (Finds #120, 121), as well as a charcoal fragment, which was recovered as Charcoal Sample #5. In contrast, we are recovering moderate quantities of pottery, the majority of which are large coarseware sherds, and small quantities of tile, plaster, and bone. we also recovered a tooth (Find #122).

In the southern part of the locus, to the east of the thin, sparse line of small stones, we have revealed the yellowish deposit, while to the west, we are at app. the same elevation as the surface of Locus 31, revealed in 2019; here, soil is still dark-gray and rich in charcoal and material culture is still visibly present. Additionally, in the northernmost part of the locus, soil is becoming more compacted, even though it is still dark gray and rich in charcoal. at this point, it is unclear whether this compaction represents a new deposit.

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Charcoal Samples

Sample #5

• Locus 38
• 107.84E/44.83S
• 26.20m A.E.

Locus 38

• Tile and plaster: ½ bowl
• Pottery: 49 sherds
• Bone: 36 fragments
• Slag: 158 fragments
• Vitrified terracotta: 80 fragments

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Special Finds

Find #120

• Locus 38
• 108.50E/44.31S
• 26.28m A.E.
• Crucible fragment

Find #121

• Locus 38
• 108.46E/44.32S
• 26.28m A.E.
• Crucible fragment

Find #122

• Locus 38
• 108.00E/44.13S
• 26.29m A.E.
• Tooth

Find #123

• Tile bowl find
• Locus 38
• 108-109E/44-47S
• 26.20-26.35m A.E.
• Crucible fragments

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